We (Uwe, Magda and I) left Amman at 10am on Friday morning for the first leg of the Sahara Race 2014. All excited for the 3hr trip to the host town of Petra. We arrived just after lunch on Friday at the Beit Zamman Hotel. The Hotel was located in what could be described as a dodgy part of Petra, but it was just the way everything looked there. No fancy buildings, buildings half build and small small little superettes.
Ok, but now the problem was....it was freezing!!! One of the main things I like about desert races is the HEAT. No no no, not in Jordan....it was winter, as in Sutherland type cold winter vibes. shit! I did not plan to take that pair of long johns, but I figured, rather take them with. it's only a few xtra grams....maybe that is why my pack ended up weighing 8.5kgs and not the 8kg when I left South Africa.
On Saturday morning we had the race briefing and kit check session before we were shipped out to the desert. The kit check is sort of funny in a way. So I pack my bag very carefully before I left for Jordan. I knew where everything was, in neat little packages in safe little pockets in my pack. Well, kit check just screws up everything. You just dump all your shit on the floor, and one of the volunteers bombards you with questions...whistle...compass...shit where is my compass...looking, searching...it is attached to the whistle. Duh? Anyway, I passed the kit check with a golden star.
Now things were starting to get real!!!
Fast forward to Camp 1...and to our home 'Karek Castle - tent nr. 9)
(Michael, Sonke, Piers, Me, Amanda, Magda - the brave troops of tent nr. 9)
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| Our desert home |
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| Magnificent view at Camp 1 |
Quick rewind to the sleeping arrangements.
Think there was about 4 or 5 Bedouin tents put up for all the competitors. There were 'deviders' between 'tents' in every Bedouin tent. We were only 6 people in our 'tent'. And it was a tight squeeze.
And I was the only one that did not have one of those fancy blow up matresses. I was the lucky winner of a sleeping mat, barely big enough for a baby. But, it is all about the weight...I sort of forgot about the comfort factor!
At 5am we were greeted by a very cold and wet Wadi Rum!
Let the games begin!!!
I am a no fuss no hassle kind of girl. In my normal working day, I would get up and be ready for work in about 20mins. I just wear whatever is lying on the floor from the past few days. and mix and match pieces of clothing that looks clean ( a true lady!)
But in the desert.....from 5am wake-up to the start line at 8am, I am busy doing stuff! STUFF!! looking for stuff, packing stuff, un-packing stuff because I cannot find the stuff I'm looking for! Really, this is not the first time I'm doing a stage race, but I still don't have my game plan for every morning.
The easy part is getting up, drinking coffee and eating breakfast (Oats so Easy with chia seeds....chia seeds don't work with Oats)(6 days of this 'delicious' breakfast)
Right, now I have to fit everything back into my pack. That should be easy...
let me take you through it:
Inside the backpack is the dry bag(compulsory), which is important even if it is not raining, because you sweat the whole day, then your sleeping bag and spare clothes and socks will be wet.
1st thing to go in, right at the bottom will be the place for my sleeping bag. Fine, easy, stuff sleeping bag into it's own little bag into the dry bag.
2nd shove in xtra socks, long sleeve shirt and spare nickers.
3rd carefully - testris like - put in the ziplock bags with the food the rest of the race.
4th close dry bag
Time to get dressed for the day.
Having a long conversation with myself
Put on running shorts....ah shit, still wearing my long johns....take off long johns and put on running pants.
(Open dry bag and squash in long johns)
Put on socks, 2 layers to prevent blisters (that worked rather well this time, NOT)
(Open dry bag again, looking for that 2nd pair of socks....can't find it...yes, yes...I can feel it right at the bottom of the pack...take it out... no, its the long sleeve top. fuckit! Dump the contents of the carefully packed drybag on the floor)
So I have to start all over again with packing my bag.
Put on socks 'Take 2'
Proceed to put on socks 'Take 3', because I put on the first pair without putting Vaseline on my feet first.
AAAHHHHHHHH!!!!!!
it is now 6:45, I am still not dressed, my bag is not packed yet.
More or less the same story everyday!!
The race or adventure is probably more accurate...
For the first hour of day 1 I felt so strong and just loved every single minute of running. After CP1 I could feel this pain in my left leg - it started at my foot and shot up all the way to my glutes. I did not know what to do, because this pain was new to me. I tried to run with Amanda, but I got to a point where I could not even walk. She walked with me for a bit, and then I just said please go, I'm holding you back. And so my Day 1 in the Wadi Rum was full of pain and full of tears!
My Italian boyfriend (Juliano, I met him at the Egypt race) came past me, and he was also in pain. If it wasn't for him, I still would have been in that desert. He just said 'come, we have to go'.
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| my Juliano |
so the 2 of us did the shuffle, desert style...slow, but steady. And I've never been so happy to see the finish line of day 1!
When we got to camp, half of the tents weren't up yet and it was raining and it was cold. We found space in one of the tents and tried to get warm. I put on my spare long sleeve shirt, down jacket and long johns and in my sleeping bag.
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| in the desert you are allowed to make a fire in a tent |
The 4 deserts organisers went to the closets town and bought a truck full of blankets. What a treat that was!!! Those blankets saved many lives!!! The blankets where so big, that I used half as a sleeping mat and the other half as a blanket. Uwe made sure that he got a leopard print blanket every night. Stylish!
From day 3 I could feel my grove coming back and I perfected the sand shuffle. And I loved every single minute in the deserts. Amanda and I ran together the whole time. That was a first for me, because for some reason I can never find someone that runs the same pace as me. And the 2 of us where unstoppable. Day 3 - 5 was probably my best running to date in any event. Man oh man, did we have fun in that desert!!!!
It is difficult to put in words just how magnificent the Wadi Rum was. Every day was completely different than the previous day. Rock formations, sand, canyons, dry river beds and a the long climb up the Turkish Road.
I found day 1 - 4 rather easy and we (Amanda and I) ran most of the time, we would only walk up a hill...because really....I really don't get it why you want to run up a hill!
and then came day 5 - The LONG March (87km)....it was a long loooonnnnggg day. and a difficult one....nothing compared to the first 4 days.
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| on top of the world!!!! |
Carlos was probably the most hated man in the whole of Jordan!
But you know what Carlos - Thanks for an AWESOME race!! Carlos was the course director for the race and he and his wingmen did a fantastic job.
There as so much more to tell...but for now I will leave you with some pictures of my 7 day holiday in Jordan.
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| not for fat people... |
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| on route to somewhere |
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| now THIS is life! look at that view!! |
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| Uwe, Michael and Sonke |
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| dinner time in the desert |
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| and the blankets! |
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| a very rocky Camp 5! aka MARS |
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| Finish line vibes! |
Already looking forward to my next desert fix in Chile in October!! ATAMACA CROSSING 2014 wooohoooo!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The year of 2014 will be a SUPER exciting year.
I've teamed up with BOS Ice Tea/BOS sport!! Watch this space! Amazing fun filled adventures await.
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